New Design Team Announced!

What an exciting time this is – the announcement of our newest Design Team!!! And WHAT a team we have!!! We just couldn’t be more thrilled!!! Each of these designers has a unique style all her own, and we are so happy to have them working with us at Flourishes. We are so pleased to introduce them to you.

LESLIE MILLER

Returning as our Senior Design Team Member is Leslie Miller. Leslie has been with Flourishes since the beginning, being a member of the Charter Design Team. You all know and love Leslie’s work. Her ability to color floral images and bring them to life before your eyes is exceeded by none. You can see Leslie’s gorgeous work at her Blog, Running with Scissors. We are just thrilled to pieces that Leslie is returning as our Senior Design Team Member!!! Welcome back, Leslie!!!

“Hello! I'm very happy to have been with Flourishes' Design Team since its beginning and I'm excited about the new stamps, products and the new design team gals I'll be working with in the months to come.

I've got about ten years' stamping behind me and many more wonderful years with this craft ahead of me. I'm an alumni of the Splitcoaststampers Dirty Dozen Design Team with a gallery at Splitcoaststampers under the username, leslierich. In February 2007 I started my blog, Running With Scissors... which is where I love to share bits and pieces of my stamping passion and possibly offer ideas and encouragement to anyone who stops by. My work has been published in Stamper's Sampler Magazine and as a Stampin' Up! hobby demonstrator I've had the opportunity to introduce several of my friends to stamping, as well.

When I'm not stamping, I spend most of my time at work in a medical laboratory or tending my large ornamental garden -- my other true passion. Family, friends and quiet pursuits bring me the most joy. Just give me a good book, a movie or a walk in the woods and I'm happy. Life has been good to me, I think. Thank you!”

FAITH HOFRICHTER

We are so pleased to welcome Faith Hofrichter to our Design Team. Many of you are very familiar with Faith and her work from her involvement in the daily challenges at Splitcoaststampers, under the username of Markie’s Mom. Faith’s work is synonymous with excitement, life, vibrancy, a little bit of funk and a whole lot of dimension and dots!!! Welcome, Faith!!! You are such a lively addition to our team and we are so pleased to count you among us!!!

“I'm so excited and humbled to have been asked to serve on Flourishes' Design Team. The talent and dedication to the art of stamping here is overwhelming!

I've been stamping for over 20 years. I started as a stamper, graduated into scrapbooking/book making, and then took a turn to quilting/designing. I was wheelchair bound after an accident that kept me from quilting. While watching cable one afternoon, I saw a show called Scrapbooking. I decided that scrapbooking was a "doable" craft for me and ended up purchasing a BUNCH of supplies on the Home Shopping Network! Finally, I found something I could do, that didn't have me standing up to use an iron or crawling around on the floor to layout patterns! I was hooked! Six months later I was published, teaching classes and was a "Scrapbooking Star” for Creating Keepsakes' Scrapbook Conventions. I am no longer in a wheelchair, thanks to many $$$$ in debt, major surgeries, and a FANTASTIC family. Three years later, I became a SU! demo and joined Splitcoaststampers in 2006. I was the Featured Stamper in July 2007 on SCS, and on several different blogs over the past few years. I have a blog, Stampin’ with Markie’s Mom, and update every day.

I am married to my best friend. Mark and I have a his, mine and ours family. Our boys are 22, 22, and 8! Markie is the light of our lives! (Hence my moniker on Splitcoaststampers: Markie's Mom)”

JULIE KOERBER

Stumbling upon Julie Koerber’s Blog, Out to Impress, was a very impressive trip, indeed!!! Julie’s work can be described as clean and crisp, but yet with great attention to detail and a fabulous use of color and composition!!! Julie also throws in a whole lot of *pretty* and her meticulous creations evoke smiles of delight by all who view them. We are so very, very pleased to have you working with us, Julie – Welcome!!!

“Wow! What an honor to be able to design for the four fab Flourishes with all their fantastic stamps and products! It’s going to be a great ride!

You could say I started stamping 8-1/2 years ago by accident when my sister-in-law ended up dragging me to a stamping party. Let’s just say she left me there and I’ve had inky fingers ever since! By day I work from home as the editor of a regional women’s magazine. By night, you’ll find me stamping into the wee hours in my “mom cave!” I feel lucky to have found this awesome hobby and truly cherish all the fun and friendships I have made along the way. Design work has been truly a dream come true for me. I’ve been lucky to get to know a couple of the “Flourishes” a little bit better during this past year! I am on Sharon’s Stamp Simply Team and help design samples for her weekly Friday challenges. Now that Flourishes has the Stamp Simply line coming out – who knows what fun we will cook up together each week! I’ve also gotten to know Nancy a bit because we are both members of the Sisterhood of the Blogging Stampers! When I’m not busy sketching out cards and coming up with new creations, you can find me teaching classes at my local stamp store or posting on Splitcoaststampers (I’m outtoimpress). Of course, you can always look for me at my home in blog land at Out to Impress. I honestly can’t wait to see what Flourishes has in store in the months to come! Thanks ladies!”

SUSAN ROBERTS

Susan’s work is well-known at Splitcoaststampers, having been a recent member of their Dirty Dozen Design Team. Although Susan’s work can often be crisp and clean, she also has a distinct vintage flair with a bent towards stately, rich, elegant creations. We are so anxious to see Susan’s creations with the Flourishes images and we welcome her warmly to our Design Team – Welcome, Susan!!!

“A few weeks ago I received a wonderful surprise email from Sharon Johnson, the newest Flourish, asking me to be on the Flourishes' Design Team! I couldn't type my "Yes!" fast enough! (Sorry if I scared you with my quick and enthusiastic response, Sharon!) I am so excited and looking so forward to the next six months!

I began my addiction to stamping about three years ago when a friend invited me to a card making workshop at someone's home. I soon decided that it should have been called a "playshop" since I haven't stopped playing or shopping since! This same friend introduced me to Splitcoaststampers (SCS) where I began to participate in the daily challenges under the username of rainy. Oh how I love a challenge.

Then last year I was asked to be a part of the Dirty Dozen Design Team on SCS for the six months of July-December. Let's talk about a challenge! Soon after completing this adventure, I decided to join the blogging world, where I Blog under the name of Rainy Day Creations. Beate Johns, blogger extraordinaire, was starting a Tuesday "Be Inspired" challenge on her blog. She asked me to be on her team of weekly sample makers. She also asked me to become a Product Reviewer for a new feature in the Weekly Inkling on SCS. How fun is that!

I feel so honored to have been asked to design for Flourishes. Thank you, Flourishes! Let the playshops continue!”

LINDA DUKE

Pretty!!! That pretty well sums it up! Everything Linda does ends up being so, so pretty!!! With just a simple stamp, paper and scissors, Linda turns out THE most fabulous creations. Whether they be cards or some of her highly detailed 3-D creations, Linda has the ability to turn the plain and ordinary into extraordinary objects of art!!! We are so pleased to call Linda one of our newest Design Team Members!!! Welcome, Linda!!!

“As a child, I always had a pencil and paper in my hands and doodled whenever I could. My father was a very talented artist and was my first teacher. I would sit and watch him make beautiful creations of landscapes, objects around the house, or anything that caught his eye. I would then try to duplicate what he had done. In school, art was always my favorite subject and I decided at a young age I wanted to study the art of animation. While in college, I majored in art and was well on my way when my life took a different turn.

Because my husband was in the military, we transferred to Europe and stayed there for three years. While there, I was fortunate enough to find a local artist that saw I enjoyed art, and she taught me how to cast and paint ceramics. I learned a great deal about texture, color and how to appreciate and accept different types of art. When I returned to the United States, I then became a Certified Instructor for Duncan Enterprises and taught ceramic art for many years. I then branched out and joined the National Society of Decorative Painters and took Tole Painting from many top instructors around the country and enjoyed this area of art as well.

Fourteen years ago, a good friend of mine asked me to attend a Stampin’ Up Party with her. I laughed at how excited she was about this new “art” form, because at the time I was thinking this wasn’t art. It was just stamping ink on paper and coloring it in. It didn’t sound creative at all! Well, needless to say I was wrong and have been stamping ever since. In fact, it is the only art I am interested in doing and I have put all my other mediums aside.

I discovered Splitcoaststampers.com in 2004 and have never left. My work there is under the name of Linda D, and I also showcase my work on my Blog, Linda’s Works of Heart. I have loved being involved in such a great stamping community and my ability has improved tremendously through the talented artists that share their work so willingly. In April 2007, I was invited to become part of the Splitcoaststampers Design team, a.k.a the Dirty Dozen, for six months and truly loved being a part of this elite team and sharing the experience with a wonderful group of ladies.”